Can Capcom’s latest take brain-bashing to new heights?

If you read my occasional ramblings on the subject, you’ll know I’ve got a real love-hate relationship with the Resident Evil franchise. The story typically melts my face off with its unyielding ray of awesome, but the controls tend to make enjoying said plot more of a chore than anything else. But now that Capcom’s taking an aggressive stance toward “modernizing” the franchise, will it change my tune? From the looks of these five aspects below, I’m thinking the answer just might be a resounding “yes.”

This One Goes Out to Janet Jackson

Sing it with me now: “Con-trollll!” Die-hard fans may be worried by some of the developers’ promises during Capcom’s annual “Captivate” preview event back in April, but after taking control of each of the game’s three protagonists, I’m happy to say that the shift toward a more popular control scheme was a welcome change. Not only could I actually target and hit people right in front of me, but move and shoot at the same time? That ain’t crazy talk, folks—it’s a genuine revolution in a series that was in desperate need of getting with the times. Thanks, Capcom!

A Little Something for Everyone

Another shift from the last few games that I met with open arms: the three distinct plotlines. Each of the game’s core characters play with their own style (Leon S. Kennedy = classic survival-horror, Chris Redfield = Gears of War–style gun-toting, and Jake Muller = acrobatic action hero), which means that this Resident Evil should have a broad sense of appeal across a wider cross-section of gamers. Considering I was told each campaign would be “about as long as the single-player campaign in Modern Warfare 2,” that means we’re in for a record number of tense moments and cheesy one-liners. Heck yes, I say.

Creepy Never Looked So Good

If you thought the added workload of three separate campaigns would hurt the series’ typical level of visual fidelity, fear not. I had the pleasure of trudging through a decadently trashed, dimly lit mansion, a series of precariously preserved rooftops, and a series of enemy-laden office buildings on the individual quests that show Capcom’s more than ready to close out this generation with a graphical bang. Cutscenes, bosses, lighting, and environmental destruction—they’re all up to snuff, adding the requisite dose of “wow” that accompanies other entries into the franchise history books…and maybe even a bit more than we’re used to.

Putting the Jake On

I’ll admit I wasn’t too sold on the idea of the wisecracking son of Albert Wesker on first inspection, but like all good Capcom characters, the J-man’s answer-to-no-man antics and sardonic quips had me buying into the idea in no time, and his high-octane, action-movie moves are a welcome change of pace to Leon’s methodical mansion march and Chris’ soldier-boy persona. I’m still not sure if he’ll have enough emphasis on melee attacks to really set him apart, but there was enough variation with the general feel of his campaign sample to sell me on the idea that we could use a little “tough guy” in RE6’s roster, so for now, I’m just gonna go with it.

Kicking Ass in Co-Op

One last detail that’ll likely help me get over my grudge against the series is that Resident Evil 6 will continue RE5’s motif of co-op multiplayer throughout the campaign—this time with the option of drop-in, drop-out co-op. Considering the control changes and the sheer amount of variety offered on the gameplay front, I can easily see myself losing hours to this one when it ships this fall—which should add a lot of replay mileage to a game that’s usually a one-and-done affair.

What are you looking forward to most in Resident Evil 6? Are you worried Capcom might be messing with a good thing, or do you embrace change with open arms? Let us know in the comments below!

Brandon Justice spent the last 17 years in the game industry wearing hats as an annoying retail weasel, an overly opinionated journalist, and game-development ninja—until he got tired of the all the caviar and groupies, returning to the ring as a rowdy, rambling writer in 2010 for EGM Media. Follow him on Twitter @jokeontheworld. Meet the rest of the crew.